reprogramming-induced-pluripotent-stem-cell-lines-from-frozen-buffy

Reprogramming Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell Lines from Frozen Buffy Coat Samples

Human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) are a valuable tool for disease modeling. Further stem cells can be reprogrammed from adult somatic cells, called ...

New York University Langone Health

Early autonomic biomarkers in ATTRv carriers.

Familial dysautonomia (FD) is an autosomal recessive hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy (HSAN, type 3) expressed at birth with profound sensory loss and early death. The FD founder mutation in the ELP1 gene arose within the Ashkenazi Jews in the sixteenth century and is present in 1:30 Jews of European ancestry. The mutation yield a tissue-specific skipping of exon 20 and a loss of function of the elongator-1 protein (ELP1), which is essential for the development and survival of neurons. Patients with FD produce variable amounts of ELP1 in different tissues, with the brain producing mostly mutant transcripts. Patients have excessive blood pressure variability due to the failure of the IXth and Xth cranial nerves to carry baroreceptor signals. Neurogenic dysphagia causes frequent aspiration leading to chronic pulmonary disease. Characteristic hyperadrenergic "autonomic crises" consisting of brisk episodes of severe hypertension, tachycardia, skin blotching, retching, and vomiting occur in all patients. Progressive features of the disease include retinal nerve fiber loss and blindness, and proprioceptive ataxia with severe gait impairment. Chemoreflex failure may explain the high frequency of sudden death in sleep. Although 99.5% of patients are homozygous for the founder mutation, phenotypic severity varies, suggesting that modifier genes impact expression. Medical management is currently symptomatic and preventive. Disease-modifying therapies are close to clinical testing. Endpoints to measure efficacy have been developed, and the ELP1 levels are a good surrogate endpoint for target engagement. Early intervention may be critical for treatment to be successful.

Familial dysautonomia.

Transthyretin amyloidosis, also called ATTR amyloidosis, is associated with accumulation of ATTR amyloid deposits in the heart and commonly manifests as progressive cardiomyopathy. Patisiran, an RNA interference therapeutic agent, inhibits the production of hepatic transthyretin.

Patisiran Treatment in Patients with Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis.

Transthyretin amyloidosis (ATTR amyloidosis) is a progressive, multisystemic, life-threatening disease resulting from the deposition of variant or wild-type (ATTRwt amyloidosis) transthyretin amyloid fibrils in various tissues and organs.

A 15-year consolidated overview of data in over 6000 patients from the Transthyretin Amyloidosis Outcomes Survey (THAOS).

Familial dysautonomia (FD) is a rare genetic neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorder. In addition to the autonomic and peripheral sensory neuropathies that challenge patient survival, one of the most debilitating symptoms affecting patients' quality of life is progressive blindness resulting from the steady loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Within the FD community, there is a concerted effort to develop treatments to prevent the loss of RGCs. However, the mechanisms underlying the death of RGCs are not well understood. To study the mechanisms underlying RGC death, Pax6-cre;Elp1 male and female mice and postmortem retinal tissue from an FD patient were used to explore the neuronal and non-neuronal cellular pathology associated with the FD optic neuropathy. Neurons, astrocytes, microglia, Müller glia, and endothelial cells were investigated using a combination of histological analyses. We identified a novel disruption of cellular homeostasis and gliosis in the FD retina. Beginning shortly after birth and progressing with age, the FD retina is marked by astrogliosis and perturbations in microglia, which coincide with vascular remodeling. These changes begin before the onset of RGC death, suggesting alterations in the retinal neurovascular unit may contribute to and exacerbate RGC death. We reveal for the first time that the FD retina pathology includes reactive gliosis, increased microglial recruitment to the ganglion cell layer (GCL), disruptions in the deep and superficial vascular plexuses, and alterations in signaling pathways. These studies implicate the neurovascular unit as a disease-modifying target for therapeutic interventions in FD.

Neuronal and glial cell alterations involved in the retinal degeneration of the familial dysautonomia optic neuropathy.

We report a 71-year-old woman who developed disabling orthostatic tremor and severe orthostatic hypertension following cosmetic neck lift surgery. Autonomic testing demonstrated exaggerated pressor responses and excessive orthostatic catecholamine release, consistent with sympathoadrenal overactivation due to impaired carotid baroreflex function. This case highlights a potential autonomic complication of aesthetic neck surgery.

Article	Year
Early autonomic biomarkers in ATTRv carriers. Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society\| PubMed ID: 36719509	2023
Familial dysautonomia. Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society\| PubMed ID: 37204536	2023
Patisiran Treatment in Patients with Transthyretin Cardiac Amyloidosis. The New England journal of medicine\| PubMed ID: 37888916	2023
A 15-year consolidated overview of data in over 6000 patients from the Transthyretin Amyloidosis Outcomes Survey (THAOS). Orphanet journal of rare diseases\| PubMed ID: 37946256	2023
Neuronal and glial cell alterations involved in the retinal degeneration of the familial dysautonomia optic neuropathy. Glia\| PubMed ID: 39228100	2024
Can a neck lift trigger orthostatic hypertension and tremors? Clinical autonomic research : official journal of the Clinical Autonomic Research Society\| PubMed ID: 41964848	2026

Alejandra Gonzalez-Duarte

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